Alex Chilton – Electricity by CandelightBar None Records-out now4 / 5 It’s a cold February night in NYC. Across from you is a legendary Memphis musician, reformed drug addict, and born-again folk singer. The lights go out – there is no electricity – and now it’s you and him, back and forth, the both of you trying to discover “that perfect folk song” to round out the night. This is not perfect, this is not mastered beautifully, and it’s not always the easiest to listen to. The audience and various noises overtake Chilton much of the time. What this is is one of those rareRead More →

Patty Griffin – Silver BellA&M Records-out now4 / 5 Our first listen to the much-delayed Silver Bell was one of relative disappointment. Compared to American Kid, the Maine-born folk singer’s latest release seemed less immediate, less pleasurable than the absolutely fantastic Kid. (Which we reviewed here.) Initially, we were thinking there was a reason it took thirteen years to get this album out there (you know, a negative reason), but again, that was our first listen. The reality of it is this: it’s different. Instead of going country on Kid, Griffin splays a laid-back, down-tempo rock groove throughout. And the fact of the matter isRead More →

London Grammar – If You WaitColumbia Records-out now4 / 5 It’s simple, really: just have one gorgeous, haunting voice and support it with piano and light (light!) guitar, drums, and set it to simple but powerful melodies… well, now you’ve got the UK trio known as London Grammar. We’re not usually one to nod along to such straightforward, well, bliss, but lead vocalist Hannah Reid just pulls, pulls us in, all without belting, all within a comfortable range. You can barely hear her stretching, which is all the more remarkable, considering that she makes us, the listeners, stretch. It’s emotive, minimalist, direct and just unmitigatedRead More →

Typhoon – “White Lighter”Roll Call Records-out Aug. 20 5 / 5 This is it; we’re calling it. The eleven-piece from Portland, OR get it right, gets it all right. Typhoon’s debut full-length, White Lighter is nothing less than a epic journey through love and death and everything in between: it is brilliant, truly brilliant, dynamic, engrossing. It is rock tuned to an orchestral feel, with horns, violins, everything they can muster in almost a dozen musicians; it is rock that doesn’t hold back, that goes on a journey with every song; it is rock in its highest form, vast, personal, operatic and yet humble. ItRead More →